Hounds Boost Playoff Position With 16-15 OT Defeat Of Bayhawks

The Charlotte Hounds on Saturday evening moved up to third place in the MLL standings with a 16-15 overtime victory against the defending champion Chesapeake Bayhawks in front of 3,330 fans at American Legion Memorial Stadium in Charlotte, N.C. Hounds attack Ryan Young was named Player of the Game for scoring the game-winning goal just 1:24 into the extra period. He tallied three goals total in the game.

The Bayhawks opened the scoring 4:17 into the first, as Steven Brooks scored on the run for an early 1-0 lead. But the Hounds answered with back-to-back goals from long pole Mason Poli to grab a 2-1 advantage. Ben Hunt tied it at 2 before Peet Poillon muscled his way to the net to put the Hounds back in front 3-2. Brooks tied the game again with his second of the night before Matt White eluded a defender with a spin move and bounced a shot by Bayhawks goaltender Kip Turner to push the Hounds ahead 4-3 at the end of one.

The second quarter was dominated by the Bayhawks, as they tallied four goals in the first 3:13, including a 2-point goal by Michael Kimmel to build a quick 8-4 advantage. Hounds rookie Jake Tripucka finally stopped the run with his first MLL goal to cut the Bayhawks lead to 8-5. But Kimmel responded with his second 2-pointer of the night to extend the advantage to 10-5. The Hounds closed the quarter with a goal, as Young got a beauty of a feed from Poli for his first tally of the game, to go into the half trailing the Bayhawks 10-6.

Tim Fallon won the opening faceoff of the second half to set up Matt Danowski’s first goal of the game, which cut the Bayhawks’ lead to 10-7. But Drew Westervelt responded with his second of the night, and John Grant Jr. added a tally of his own to extend the lead back to five, 12-7. Danowski sensed the urgency for the Hounds at that time and ripped a 2-pointer to pull the team back within three, 12-9. Westervelt and Mike Sawyer traded goals before Danowski tallied his second 2-pointer of the night to close the third quarter with the Hounds trailing by just one, 13-12.

Young kept the momentum rolling for the Hounds, scoring his second of the night to tie the game at 13 just 1:13 into the final quarter. Danowski scored his fourth of the night, a power-play goal, sandwiched between two more tallies by Grant Jr., which kept the Bayhawks ahead 15-14 with 5:33 remaining in the game. With time running out, Poillon beat two defenders on his way to the net, and scored the equalizer with a behind-the-back shot. The final 3:56 went scoreless as Adam Ghitelman came up with a huge save in the waning seconds to send the game to overtime.

Fallon won the opening faceoff in the extra period, but he was stripped of the ball giving the Bayhawks a chance to win it. Ghitelman came up with another huge save though, and possession shifted to the Hounds. Danowski took a shot, just missing the net, but Young was waiting on the doorstep where he dropped to his knees to grab the rebound and bury it for the victory.

The Hounds (4-4) next week kick off a two-game road trip with a rematch against the Denver Outlaws at Sports Authority Field at Mile High in Denver, CO. The teams first met Week 1 in Charlotte, with the Outlaws coming away with a 21-16 victory. The game will begin at 9:00pm ET and be televised on a one-hour tape delay on CBS Sports Network.